It’s important to be able to recognise the signs of domestic abuse and to reach out for help when you can:

• Emotional abuse may involve: undermining your sense of self-worth through verbal abuse such as constant criticism, belittling, name-calling; emotional blackmailing, guilt-tripping and gaslighting; embarrassment or humiliation, being put down in front of others; isolation from friends and family by attempting to convince you that you are a bad mother/ daughter/ friend and that the abuse is your fault.
• Physical and/or sexual abuse may involve: pushing, hitting, punching, choking; using a weapon to threaten or hurt you, threatening death, destroying your belongings; forcing you to leave your home or preventing you from leaving, calling police or seeking medical attention; sexual assault, rape, forcing: unprotected sex, imitation of pornography, sex with others or non-consensual dissemination of intimate images (fka “revenge porn”).
• Economic abuse may involve: making or attempting to create financial dependence by maintaining control over financial resources. This may include: withholding access to money, forbidding attendance at school or employment, being forced to borrow money, make benefits claims and/or poor credit ratings.

Please note this list is on-exhaustive. Other forms of abuse may include, but are not limited to: honour based violence and abuse; forced marriage; trafficking; stalking and harassment; online and digital abuse.